It'd be thrilling to watch if evolution invents cryptographically signed DNA to prevent malicious viruses, plasmids and what not from using cell's reproduction machinery.
To an extent, engineered bacteria do this already. Though E coli are quite tolerant, I've known instances when they reject foreign DNA that you're trying to get into them (eg to express a protein).
I was confused by your comment for a moment. Then I realized that you probably don't know that there already exist natural viruses which hijack bacteria by injecting their own DNA.
Wherever you find bacteria, you also find these bacteriophages. They co-evolve with their host in a never-ending arms race of defenses and counters. No asymmetric crypto though :-)
> It'd be thrilling to watch if evolution invents cryptographically signed DNA to prevent malicious viruses, plasmids and what not from using cell's reproduction machinery.
Here's an example from nature in which evolution came up with an encryption strategy to evade predators. It even uses prime numbers:
Using DNA is using "atoms" themselves for storage. DNA is about 50 atoms/bit, and nature has given us machinery for replicating this data and even some types of error correction. And the linear structure and base-pairing action of DNA gives us the capability to perform data retrieval physically.
I will be surprised if anybody can come up with a nanotechnology scheme that comes even close to matching DNA's density in the next few decades. Look at the difficulties of even reading DNA, we can stick it through a nanopore, but it's not a trivial task to read off the various shapes of molecules as they poke through. Can you come up with a linear structure that is as stable but also allows for easier readout? If you start with DNA, but then add various modifications, how are you going to read out those modifications to the bases, and how are you going to replicate and copy that data?
I'm sure that it will happen that we eventually best DNA's density when it comes to storing information in covalent bonds, but our nanotechnology isn't even close to being able to come up with something like that now. Reusing biology's inventions are our only hope for the near future.
I don't know if this will ever be possible, I hope it will be:
You engineer some harmless bacteria to start glowing if it encounters cancerous cell. You take pill with such bacteria, then you look at your poop. If it glows - you go to doctor. If no - you take such pill half a year later. Most cancers can be cured if detected so early.
I'm guessing that by piggybacking on biology, we can use a lot of preexisting abilities of the living for our organic computers, such as self-repairing.
> For instance, one would think works for using atoms themselves as storage would yield a far superior logical/physical size ratio.
Yes, except that quantum effects make most single atoms an unreliable storage medium. Less so for DNA which, by its size, is less susceptible to quantum effects.
[+] [-] adobriyan|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ananyob|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] wcoenen|13 years ago|reply
Wherever you find bacteria, you also find these bacteriophages. They co-evolve with their host in a never-ending arms race of defenses and counters. No asymmetric crypto though :-)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacteriophage
[+] [-] lutusp|13 years ago|reply
Here's an example from nature in which evolution came up with an encryption strategy to evade predators. It even uses prime numbers:
http://arachnoid.com/prime_numbers/index.html#Mathematical_L...
[+] [-] iwwr|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] CreRecombinase|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] spoiler|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] steeve|13 years ago|reply
For instance, one would think works for using atoms themselves as storage would yield a far superior logical/physical size ratio.
[+] [-] epistasis|13 years ago|reply
I will be surprised if anybody can come up with a nanotechnology scheme that comes even close to matching DNA's density in the next few decades. Look at the difficulties of even reading DNA, we can stick it through a nanopore, but it's not a trivial task to read off the various shapes of molecules as they poke through. Can you come up with a linear structure that is as stable but also allows for easier readout? If you start with DNA, but then add various modifications, how are you going to read out those modifications to the bases, and how are you going to replicate and copy that data?
I'm sure that it will happen that we eventually best DNA's density when it comes to storing information in covalent bonds, but our nanotechnology isn't even close to being able to come up with something like that now. Reusing biology's inventions are our only hope for the near future.
[+] [-] ajuc|13 years ago|reply
You engineer some harmless bacteria to start glowing if it encounters cancerous cell. You take pill with such bacteria, then you look at your poop. If it glows - you go to doctor. If no - you take such pill half a year later. Most cancers can be cured if detected so early.
[+] [-] Drakim|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] lutusp|13 years ago|reply
Yes, except that quantum effects make most single atoms an unreliable storage medium. Less so for DNA which, by its size, is less susceptible to quantum effects.
[+] [-] mtp0101|13 years ago|reply